Nintendo DS2 Rumors Continue at GDC 2010

CheckD3

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Dec 9, 2009
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Nintendo try and release too many versions of the same handhelds.

The DS lite was a sensible upgrade, making the DS a lot better functionally, but the DSi was just to make more money by putting a camera where there used to be a GBA slot. And the DSiXL was ANOTHER way to make money

This reminds me of the Gameboy Micro, anyone remember that? If you don't, that's the point...
 

Jared

The British Paladin
Jul 14, 2009
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They only just release the fat version though...why do they need to keep improving on something which has hardly been out so long?

Seems like a littlebackwards logic to keep improving on something old then just throw it out entirely
 

Zer_

Rocket Scientist
Feb 7, 2008
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WhiteTigerShiro said:
FrancoDHorse said:
Aww D:

Is it really necessary to come out with a new handheld? >_>
Given that the DS is about 6 years old, and the average console tends to last about 5 years...

Granted that the current gen of consoles is also about 5 years old with no news of the next console, but that's simply because the graphics are at the point where... what are they going to update? The only thing they can really improve on the 360 or PS3 is by improving on areas where only a handful of gamers will notice the difference, and that handful is probably already devoted to the PC since that's the console where you can really tinker with that background stuff.

Meanwhile the DS2 (according to current rumors) will be like the jump from the N64 to the Gamecube.
You haven't seen DirectX 11, have you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR40GwRtFyw

The reason there are no new consoles is primarily because of the financial situation. People won't be able to afford another generation.
 

BlueHighwind

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Jan 24, 2010
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Don't worry, I liked Super Mario Sunshine too. Well, everything except the final volcano-level: that boat part was absolutely impossible.
 

JediMB

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Oct 25, 2008
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Well, if this gets confirmed soon, I'm likely to just stick with my old DS Phat until the DS2 is out. If it's still a few years away, I might just invest in a DSi XL, though.

Nimbus said:
I'll buy it, if it has full backwards compatibility, at least down to GBA. Otherwise, it'll be a waste of money, at least, for me.
The GBA slot isn't coming back. It's too easy to abuse for piracy; which is why it was removed to begin with.
 

Mazimadu

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Mar 15, 2010
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Well given Nintendo's track record with handhelds(and Nintendo machines in general) I expect it to have some of the following:

1. Each "LCD" screen should have a resolution of at least 480x320 (anything lower would be an insult since the iphone comes at this resolution)
2. Backwards compatibility with most DS and Advance games at the software level (there may be some change to the card slot)
3. A processor that is at least 300MHz (the PSP Go has a 333MHz CPU, the GameCube is 486 MHz)
4. Should cost at most $200 at launch (Nintendo has a track record of making cheap handhelds, a factor of their success).
5. Most of the core features of the DSi (touch screen(duh), wifi, SD card slot)
6. Internal memory of at least 1GB since DLC is all the rage these days(Nintendo hasn't really been good at adding memory to their devices(remember the expansion pack). Expect it to be flash memory to keep the cost down)
7. If the name is different, expect some strange innovative design choice that makes it different from other handhelds.
8. Finally, expect Sony to announce a replacement for the PSP with all of the features I said above, AND MORE, at double the price at launch.

Thats my 2 cents
 

GodKlown

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Dec 16, 2009
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This sounds a LOT like a Nintendo version of an IPad.

Anyway, the DS2 sounds good, according to rumor. I'd like to see better use of the wi-fi on the DS, possibly an online MP capability or something. It would be ridiculous if they didn't make it backwards compatible... but not totally out of the realm of possibilities. Eventually they are going to want to cut you off from the old technology so you invest more in the new games.

Whatever they do, they really should stick with the cartridge based system for as long as they can. With the new advances with SSD memory, they can pretty well avoid the follies of mini-disc based handhelds and retain a small size for the game cartridge. When you can get a USB thumbdrive with 128 GB available, that presents an interesting amount to use for production.

I couldn't really see shelling out for the DSi XL. If they wanted you to play games on a bigger screen, why don't they just add an HDMI input to the DSi? Is that really such a bad idea to anyone else?
 

CrystalShadow

don't upset the insane catgirl
Apr 11, 2009
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Quadtrix said:
I'm wondering if it will use disks, since a cartridge probably won't be enough to hold games that are Gamecube-level.
They could just use some sort of memory card system. Like a SD or something similar with some kind of lock. A SDHC card can get as big as 32 GB and that would be enough to store games for the 360 and more on it. I've actually discussed that they should use some card thingy on new consoles rather than discs once before.[/quote]

They aleady do. The DS 'cartridge' is in fact a proprietary derivative of the SD format.
The cost/size limits are probably quite similar, in fact.

So... A 32 Gig DS game isn't exactly out of the realms of possibility as it is.

Zer_ said:
WhiteTigerShiro said:
FrancoDHorse said:
Aww D:

Is it really necessary to come out with a new handheld? >_>
Given that the DS is about 6 years old, and the average console tends to last about 5 years...

Granted that the current gen of consoles is also about 5 years old with no news of the next console, but that's simply because the graphics are at the point where... what are they going to update? The only thing they can really improve on the 360 or PS3 is by improving on areas where only a handful of gamers will notice the difference, and that handful is probably already devoted to the PC since that's the console where you can really tinker with that background stuff.

Meanwhile the DS2 (according to current rumors) will be like the jump from the N64 to the Gamecube.
You haven't seen DirectX 11, have you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PR40GwRtFyw

The reason there are no new consoles is primarily because of the financial situation. People won't be able to afford another generation.
... Interesting demo, but... Meh.

Microsoft takes it's lead from Ati it seems. (Not that huge a surprise, given the Xbox 360's gpu).

DirectX 10 was basically the PC derivative of the 360's graphics system, with the Xbox 360's GPU being a precursor to the Ati Radeon HD 2000 series.

(Nvidia had no interest in unified shaders, but Microsoft essentially forced their hand.)

And... Ati has the first Dx11 Gpus. (I own a 5770, personally. Impressive, but I don't know how much more impressive it is than it's predecessors.

Which brings me to my point. That entire video is about Dx11's hardware tesselation support.
Good to get mainstream API support for it, but it's not a new feature.
Ati has had the internal hardware to do it since the HD 2000 series, and their own api extensions can even get it working in DirectX 9...

And, given the general similarities in design, it wouldn't at all surprise me if an Xbox 360 has a hardware tesselator as well.

Meaning, what's shown in this demo is exactly no advance at all. (unless you own a PC with Nvidia graphics - And as an aside, this is the reason games rarely implement it, since only Ati hardware would be capable of showing it off for the time being.)

So... Yeah. Not as impressive an advance as it might appear to be.
 

Yopaz

Sarcastic overlord
Jun 3, 2009
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The Almighty Narf said:
Yopaz said:
Quadtrix said:
I'm wondering if it will use disks, since a cartridge probably won't be enough to hold games that are Gamecube-level.
They could just use some sort of memory card system. Like a SD or something similar with some kind of lock. A SDHC card can get as big as 32 GB and that would be enough to store games for the 360 and more on it. I've actually discussed that they should use some card thingy on new consoles rather than discs once before.
Hopefully they'll catch up with Apple and Sony and due away with physical media entirely. Throw a 30 GB HDD in there or something. Though, if they do stay with physical media, flash memory certainly has potential for a hella'lot more storage than disks at this point.
Yeah, Nintendo is kinda behind on that part. They really need to learn from the competition and give us some room to store stuff.